Savannah morning news. [volume] (Savannah) 1868-1887, 1887-03-02
q WAR "REMINISCENCES.
How the Tennessee River Was once
Brideed in Twelve Hours,
r,o,n The Cineinn0ti Tines-Star.


From the Cincinnati Times-Star.
IA man could go through twenty bat
Ties on a quarter the cold nerve that Andy
HickenIooper bad to use In one little
onisode with MCPHERSON down on the
tennessee river, when there wasn't an
enemv in sight," said Capt. Jim Harper
,oa reporter one day recently. "One
evening about an hour before shutdown
Col. Hickenlooper was called to McPher-
sons tent and informed tnaV IL was ds
necessary for the entire army OF $4,000
mon 10 be across the river and after the
Johnpies by daylight next morning.
tesRut. General said Andy, there isn't
e+ick of timber within forty miles Dig
enough to carry an empty ca1sson, and
the wagons with the pontoons are ten
.s.Can;t help that replied Mcpherson
curtly, The bridge must be built and
the army on the move before O'CLOCK to-
morrow morning. Good afternoon, Col.
HickenloOper.'
~ lett the tent and went down to the
river, said Gen. HIckenlooper, in telling
TINS experience not long ago, land don't
sunnose & man could be in greater misery,
mentally, than l was. l walked up and
down the bank for an hour sizing up the
situation. / knew that, as Chief OF the
Engineer Corps, was expected to solve
the problem some way ;and that to fall then
was TO lose all standing professionally
not only for the war. but probably for all
the future. think | must have sweat
hIood. II such thing were possible.
FINALLY wandered nearly half mile up
the bank and there, half mile back. L
came across an old gin piled full OF cot
ton. guess there must have been 1000
or 1000 bales. My sha-pened wits caught
on right away. Why not make bridge
of the cotton, using The boards Tor a road
N~as.s.II n thirty minutes had large detail
of men on the ground, and the nights
work commenced. We sunk the bales
with big stones, laying two tiers OF four
bales each clear across the river, holding
.bem in place by two big cables stretched
across on the lower side. The boards of
the gin made tolerable roadway, but at
It's best it was an awful scaly job. The
top bales were only about three inches
out of the water, and | wasn't at all sure
the cables would stand the strain. But
at 3o'clock | walked up to McPhers0n's
tent and routed BIN out ofbed How we'll
remember him lying there on his elbow,
holding up a match to see my face as l
approached bis bunk. general, the bridge
is ready" Every well, Colonel" had
passed before the match went out, and
before | had walked three rods from
headquarters 'sboots and saddles" had
been sounded and the camp was bed
lam.
"'I crossed the bridge and stood at the
edge Of the water, expecting and dread
ing to see the cables part under the ter
rifle strain. Why, those cotton bales
settled under the weight of the heavy guns
until the water ran into the mouth OF the
cannon, but she stood the test, and at IL 80
the last wagon mad made safe passage, and
we signaled ahead to Mcpherson: ''All
over" In a little while an orderly came
galloping back to summon me to McPher-
son, who was five miles ahead by this
time. When / rode up to my autocratic
superior he saluted and said: THAT was
we'll done, Colonel. Now YOU go back and
| cut the bridge loose and I'll telegraph the
gunboats down on the Mississippi to pick
up the cotton for you and your assistant
engineer" | thought that was first
class reward, and of course performed my
part of the work. concluded HickenlOop-
er. what did the cotton bring him, Mr..
Hsrperw
Not red cent. The gunboats picked
up the cotton all right, but Andy never
saw any of the money for it. 1t looks
hard to tell man to make something out
OfnOthing, but that's war. It's only in
active field service that fellow learns
the full meaning of the proverb, Necessity
knows no law AS an engineer and an
ez-soldier, l tell you I'd rather be twenty
times under fire than pass through one
such snap as that which induced Gen.
HickenlOOper to plan and construct
bridge strong enough to carry siX-mule
wagons, loaded with subsistence and
ammunition, out of cotton bales, over
swift stream, in less than twelve hours.v